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Sri Lanka’s embattled president Gotabaya Rajapaksa has flown overseas, heading to the neighbouring Maldives, in response to native officers.
The 73-year-old chief, his spouse and a bodyguard had been amongst 4 passengers on board an Antonov-32 Sri Lankan navy plane which took off from Colombo’s worldwide airport on Tuesday, immigration officers instructed Agence France-Presse.
“Their passports had been stamped and so they boarded the particular air power flight,” an immigration official concerned within the course of stated. There was no quick affirmation Rajapaksa had reached the Maldives.
Airport officers stated the plane was held up for over an hour on the tarmac with out having the ability to take off following confusion over permission to land within the Maldives.
“There have been some anxious moments, however in the long run all the pieces labored out OK,” an airport official stated. “The plane is because of land on the Male worldwide airport.”
Rajapaksa, who is because of formally resign on Wednesday after months of demonstrations calling for him to step down, had reportedly tried to flee to Dubai on Monday night time.
Officers stated immigration workers prevented the president from going to the VIP space of the airport to stamp his passport and he wouldn’t undergo the atypical queues for worry of being mobbed by the general public.
In consequence, Rajapaksa reportedly missed 4 flights to the United Arab Emirates, and he, his spouse and a dozen different relations and shut aides spent the night time at a close-by navy base.
It seems that the president has tried to observe a number of avenues of escape in current days. The Indian authorities reportedly refused permission for a Sri Lankan navy aircraft carrying the president to land at an Indian civilian airport, whereas the US embassy refused to grant him a customer visa, in response to US embassy sources who spoke to native media.
Rajapaksa, who lived within the US for years and has a son and grandchild there, gave up his twin US citizenship with a view to run for president, which suggests he’s now ineligible for a customer visa.
Whereas he’s nonetheless president, Rajapaksa enjoys immunity from arrest. It’s believed he sought to go overseas earlier than stepping right down to keep away from the potential for being detained.
He’s accused of overseeing corruption and financial mismanagement which have bankrupted the nation and triggered the worst monetary disaster on document.
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He has additionally been accused of struggle crimes, together with enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, throughout his time as defence minister, when he introduced the civil struggle, fought towards the Tamil minority, to a bloody finish in 2009. For greater than a decade the allegations towards him have been prevented from reaching the courts.
The president was not the one member of the household unsuccessfully attempting to flee. His youthful brother Basil Rajapaksa, who served as finance minister and has additionally been accused of widespread corruption, was prevented from boarding a flight to the US through Dubai on Tuesday morning after different passengers protested.
Airport workers refused to let him use the fast-track concierge service and stopped him getting on the flight. In keeping with airport officers, because the state of affairs grew tense, Basil Rajapaksa, who has twin US citizenship, retreated.
On Tuesday night time sources instructed the BBC that Basil Rajapaksa has additionally now left the nation, with studies that he was on his approach to the US.
AFP contributed to this report
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